Continuance

Summer 1996 Volume 10 Number 4

Continuance is a quarterly newsletter funded by the Illinois Board of Higher Education. It is a collaborative project of the 23 Higher Education Cooperation Act partners in Illinois

Contents

Front Page

Grandparents: An Untapped Resource

The Changing Role of Grandparents by Helene Block Fields

Page Two

Grand parenting--Understanding Today's Children by David Elkind

What grandparents can do?

Infancy

The Preschool Years

Childhood

Adolescence

Development has not changed

Page Three

Ten Best Gifts for Grandchildren

Ten Best Gifts for Grandparents

Page Four

Grand parenting Problems and Solutions

Grandparents Upset by the Antics of Grandchildren by Michael J. McCarthy

The Grandparent and Divorce

Page five

Tips for Good Grand parenting by Helene Block Fields

More Tips for Long-Distance Grandparents

Page Six

Grand parenting from Different Perspectives

A Vital Connection

Grandparent Education Councils by Robert & Shirley Strom

Page Seven

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

"What are you doing to help grandparents raising grandchildren?"

AARP Grandparent Information Center

Page Eight

Addressing issues related to grandparents raising grandchildren

Grand Connections

Grandparent Study

The 1995 White House Conference on Aging

Page Nine

State Taskforce Seeks to Assist Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

Beginnings of a statewide task force by Patrice Thomas

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Study

Page Ten

Grandparenting Resources

Newsletters

Books or Manuals

Camps

New Video: Making the Case for Service-Learning

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Resources

Page Eleven

Coming

August

Storyteller

September

October

November

Call for Papers

Back Page

Coming September 13

3 Ways to Celebrate Intergenerational Week September 8-14, 1996

Front Page

Grandparents: An Untapped Resource

This issue of Continuance is dedicated to grandparents and grandchildren who are pulling together to improve education and create a sense of community that many felt has been lost. Grandparents and grandchildren are the linchpins for promoting peace and harmony in the family and school but so often that role is confusing and ill defined. In this special issue, we offer a view of grandparenting from experts and give you suggestions for resources to expand your thinking.

A hearty thank you to Helene Block Fields, who gave depth and structure to the newsletter, Janet Sainer and Kevin Brabazon, the Brookdale Foundation, for their marvelous insights on Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, Robert Strom for his cutting edge approaches, Arthur Kornhaber for sharing his upbeat perspectives, Barbara Bowman for her positive and doable ideas, and Rene Woodruff from AARP's Grandparenting Center, for a wealth of information. Jane Angelis, Editor

The Changing Role of Grandparents by Helene Block Fields

Is grandparenting the same as it used to be or has it changed? The answer is, it's both. Many of us in the older generation were brought up with traditions of obedience, authority, and respect. Today, many children are encouraged to speak their minds and share their feelings at any time. A real culture shock exists between the way grandparents remember their own upbringing and some approaches to child development. What can grandparents do to face this challenge? First and foremost, parents and grandparents need to become a team. This requires a delicate balance and good communication.

Problems, however, are normal and will happen. Three challenges facing grandparents are communicating with adult children and grandchildren, long distance grandparenting, and, for some, grandparents of divorce. Helpful tips follow on pages 4 and 5.

Page Two

Grandparenting--Understanding Today's Children
by David Elkind

What grandparents can do?

Infancy

Erik Erickson argues that the first year of life is critical for the child to attain an abiding sense of trust and the second year of life develops a sense of self. When as grandparents, we have our infant grandchildren for an evening or weekend or longer, there is much we can do to foster this sense of trust and sense of self. Talking, making nonsense rhymes, and telling the baby stories while giving care all contribute to the child's sense that the world is a safe and responsive place.

The Preschool Years

We can take the time to read to our grandchildren, to play games with them, and take them for walks and talk with them about what we see and hear. We need to make every effort to expose young children to all that is beautiful and wonderful in the world.

Childhood

Focusing upon the positive, supporting and encouraging the child to develop his or her skills and abilities rather than bemoaning what the child doesn't have, is most helpful to the child and to the grandparents. Grandparents are, on the whole, a bit less competitive than are parents, so they are comfortable being supportive regardless of outcomes. This unconditional support is very important to the young athlete or performer and helps build that very special connection between grandparent and grandchild.

Adolescence

We are most supportive of young people at this stage when we recognize the seriousness of their concerns and do not make light of them or tease them. We help young people most by doing and saying whatever will make them feel more comfortable and accepting of the physical envelope their genes have issued them. The best strategy for helping teenagers in matters educational is to avoid lecturing them. It is much more helpful to serve as a sounding board for our grandchildren. Teenagers will often talk to us when they will not talk to their parents. The book, Grandparenting--Understanding Today's Grandchildren is available in bookstores and libraries.

Development has not changed

"Child Development has not changed but how children display their development has changed. For example, children used to be discouraged from participating in adult conversations. They were seen and not heard. Today many parents listen inattentively to their children and as a result children frequently interrupt adult conversations." Barbara Bowman, Erickson Institute.

Page Three

Ten Best Gifts for Grandchildren

1. The gift of SELF-WORTH. Children feel great when their grandparents give them positive recognition. When Grandma treasures their drawings or Grandpa praises them for a job well done, children feel special and worthwhile.

2. The gift of EXAMPLE. Because they admire their grandparents, children may assume some of their values and copy what they do at a later time.

3. The gift of CARING. Grandparents can show grandchildren they care by providing support when it is needed. Loving and caring grandparents can, for example, help a young child overcome the threat of a new baby in the home or provide a sense of stability and security at a time of illness or accident.

4. The gift of GROWING OLDER GRACEFULLY. Many children are frightened of growing old. But if they have pleasant experiences with elders who approach life with excitement and good humor, children will have a more positive view of growing older themselves.

5. The gift of KNOWLEDGE. Grandparents may have special skills they can share with their grandchildren.

6. The gift of CHANGE. Grandparents are experts in change. They have seen the first televisions, the first computers, and the first space flights.

7. The gift of HERITAGE. Whether they live many miles away from their grandchildren or just down the block, grandparents can do much to give children a feeling of family and sense of security and belonging.

8. The gift of HOPE. Because of their extensive life experience, grandparents can give young people a sense of hope for the future.

9. The gift of HAPPY MEMORIES. Warm moments with grandparents can be special memories, experiences that provide strength during difficult times.

10. The gift of LOVE AND ACCEPTANCE. It means a lot to know that whether you fail a test, break a glass, or lose a ball game, grandparents still love and accept you. The gift of "I love you, no matter what," whether spoken aloud, written in a letter, or shown by deeds will always be the most treasured and remembered present of all.

Ten Best Gifts for Grandparents

1. The gift of SELF-WORTH. Being involved with their grandchildren helps grandparents feel needed and useful.

2. The gift of PRIDE. Grandparents can find satisfaction in seeing their grandchildren grow and change, realizing their efforts made a difference.

3. The gift of CARING. A child's love means a great deal to grandparents. Grandparents need their grandchildren's affection and recognition.

4. The gift of CONTACT. Older children can help elders better understand what is happening to modern day youth and keep in contact with social changes.

5. The gift of LAUGHTER. Children can nurture a sense of youthfulness in their grandparents. By taking part in their grandchildren's lives and enjoying their times together, grandparents can share in their joyful responses to life.

6. The gift of BRIDGING. Grandparents generally feel a responsibility to both their children and grandchildren. Because they are often less threatening than parents, children may listen to their grandparents.

7. The gift of COMPLETION. By having an effect on the lives of children, grandparents can bring a sense of completion or fulfillment to their own lives.

8. The gift of PURPOSE. Being important to children can provide a purpose or goal in life for many grandparents. The welfare of grandchildren can give direction to the efforts of grandparents.

9. The gift of RENEWAL. Parents have a second chance to nurture children when they become grandparents.

10. The gift of ACTIVITY. Children can fill the world of grandparents with laughter and busy activity. Taking children on trips, caring for them, or making things for them all provide worthwhile activities for grandparents.

Excerpts from Grandparenting: A Gift for Generations, Cooperative Extension Service, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS.

Page Four

Grandparents Upset by the Antics of Grandchildren

As a grandmother, Mary Fran really doesn't want to meddle. But the 46-year-old nurse in Niles, Mich., has more than a little trouble holding her tongue when Greggy, her three-year-old grandson, shouts the 'f' word across a department store. Or when Amanda, her four-year-old granddaughter, is allowed to fill up on Lucky Charms cereal and Doritos.

For Dick Stevens, a retired electrical engineer in Phoenix, it's the toys--spilling from closets, covering bedroom floors--that leave him shaking his head. "It's like a sea of plastic," the 66-year-old grandfather says. "For my 10th birthday, I got half a bicycle--my brother and I shared it.

Dredging up the good old days, of course, has long been a tactic of the senior set. But grandparents today are troubled by more than junk food and Ninja Turtles. Their grandchildren's behavior and attitude, they say, are bad enough. But their own children, they say, may be worse.

The Grandparent and Divorce

This is a particularly challenging role. It takes great skill and courage to keep a family connected that has been split apart. The relationship with grandchildren must be the priority for grandparents of divorce. There are no simple recipes but with determination, good communication, and great love many families have been able to incorporate grandchildren of divorce into their families in a positive way. For questions and answers about grandparents of divorce and visitation rights, contact AARP Grandparenting Center. See page 10.

Grandparents Helping Grandparents through Discussion Groups

Why are grandparent discussion groups essential in today's world? In recent decades the roles and responsibilities of modern grandparents have changed dramatically. Societal changes including divorce, mobility, working mothers, and new options for older people have forced grandparents to assess their positions and influence in the family. Grandparents are often caught in conflicting wants and needs; to sit for grandchildren or take a trip...to include step-children in gifts and/or wills...to speak up when they see unhealthy behavior in their grandchildren.

A grandparent discussion group began at Oakton Community College in 1985 for the purpose of solving common grandparenting problems through sharing and group discussion of issues and feelings. The group met monthly for 1 1/2 hours for 8 years. The three main categories of concerns included communicating with grandchildren and adult children, long distance grandparenting, and grandparents of divorce. We learned a great deal from one another about the joys and challenges of mature grandparenting.

Some grandparents had serious communication problems and could not comfortably discuss any concerns, feelings, or issues about grandchildren with their adult children. The bottom line was that their relationships with their children lacked authenticity. They said that if they were really open and honest, they feared their adult children would take offense and punish them by keeping the grandchildren away. After much discussion of this problem, it became clear that the grandparents needed ideas and information on communication to form close relationships with their grandchildren.

One of the most difficult challenges in our grandparent group was supporting long distance grandparents. We knew it was hard for them to hear of the delightful interactions between grandparents and grandchildren who live close to one another. Far away grandparents often sadly described the pain of parting after visits or holidays. Some grandparents were angry, they felt cheated by life.

Page Five

Tips fro Good Grandparenting by Helene Block Fields

1. Use positive communication and listening techniques when interacting with grandchildren and their parents.

* Remember the golden rule.

* Good eye contact and a positive attitude help.

* Don't put anyone on the defense. Use "I" not "You." If something is bothering you say, "I'm worried about. . . I don't understand, will you explain to me?"

* Avoid saying "You should do this, you shouldn't do that."

* Listen with empathy, wait, then rephrase and check for accuracy. "Did I hear you correctly?"

2. Long Distance grandparents must be creative to keep the relationship strong:

* Form an early connection with very young ones; find ways to visit so they can bond with your voice, face, and loving hands.

* Later, send small items such as little dolls, cars and cards. These concrete items help young children know that grandparents understand what they like.

* If visits are not possible, use the telephone, which works best with older grandchildren, send audio tapes with bedtime stories and song, and, of course, exchange photos and video tapes.

* Include older grandchildren in preparing for visits. Make and send a calendar, marking the days until you will be together.

* If possible, spend one-on-one time with each grandchild during the visit, often for a short time. This is the best glue.

3. Learn more about your grandchildren's developmental stages--what is appropriate behavior and what is not.

* Explore books and newsletters on how to be more effective and grandparents.

4. Realize that parents are in charge, regardless of whether or not you agree with their philosophy of childrearing.

* A cardinal rule is to not give opinions unless asked. If there is a critical health or safety issue, then speak up.

5. Become more supportive and non-judgmental of the parents. They appreciate it if you acknowledge the difficulties of raising children in our pressured society.

6. Join or start a grandparent discussion group to share ideas and critical issues in a supportive environment. Contact local colleges or agencies for help, if needed. Without being judgmental of one another. Grandparents need creative support and a safe place to air their feelings. It is not always appropriate to do it with adult children and grandchildren.

7. A cardinal rule is to let you children raise the grandchildren. It is their responsibility. The only time your opinion may be vital is if there is a critical health or safety issue. Then speak up.

More Tips for Long-Distance Grandparents

* Write conventional letters or try something more creative using pictures and words cut from magazines and pasted on paper. Send postcards or greeting cards for no reason in particular.

* When ever possible, take pictures of important events and send them to your grandchildren. A photo album to hold the snapshots you send makes a nice gift.

* Create newsletters with true and imaginary stories about your grandchildren, yourself, events or anything else you want to share. Include photos, drawings, comics, ads, etc.

* A magazine that arrives every month with the grandchild's name on it is a regular reminder that Grandparents remember how grown-up the child is becoming. Librarians know what youngsters of a certain age are reading and what is available.

* Want to help your grandchildren read without it seeming like homework? Look for something interesting in print--a story about an unusual animal, a funny situation, a favorite sport or personality, jokes, riddles, special comic strips--and clip it out and send it. They can stretch a child's imagination, develop a sense of humor or pique new interests.

* Play chess or some other game by mail. Try to find a common hobby or interest: in collecting, telling jokes, following sports, etc. Think of ways to share your enthusiasm for your common interests.

* Don't forget E-Mail!

From Connections--For the Elderly at Home--Miami-Dade Public Library System, Fall '91.

Page Six

Grandparenting from Different Perspectives

A Vital Connection

With changes in health and longevity, we have been given 20 extra years of life to help our kids and grandchildren. This is an unprecedented opportunity to gain a meaningful and powerful later life. Grandparenting is a template for living a meaningful old age whether or not they have had children. The following are characteristics of good grandparents.

1. When your children get married we must welcome their spouse as our new child. We learn to communicate openly and freely and lovingly. Problems are normal and when you have one with a daughter or son, take them out to lunch and in a one-to-one conversation discuss the problem. Don't be judgmental or critical. Say "It hurt my feelings" rather than "It's your fault and you are a bad person." The first statement will disarm hostility and put the conversation in a more positive light. It is up to us as grandparents to set a positive tone of compromise.

2. Everytime a grandchild is born a grandparent is born. Grandparents are the head and heart of the family. The grandparent gains a new role and moves to a new level of emotional and spiritual growth. It is a huge psychological shift in the giving, forgiving, and understanding of life.

3. When we hear "I'm getting older," remember that old is really good. Forget about the wrinkles, we are a generation that is going to be giving service all our lives. We have a sacred duty to help our kids and grandkids.

4. Grandchildren need to have people who are crazy about them and to be raised by many people not just one or two people.

5. Parents are the linchpin of the grandparent-grandchild connection. Parents have to understand that grandparents and grandchildren need time without parents.

6. When grandparents are far away from grandchildren, and time together is rare, a summer camp or special time together at least once a year helps forge connections that will last a lifetime.

For further information about grandparenting, write to the Foundation for Grandparenting, 53 Principe de Paz, Santa Fe, NM 87505. Include a legal sized stamped (65 cent) envelope. A quarterly newsletter called Vital Connections is also available.

Grandparent Education Councils by Robert and Shirley Strom, Arizona State University

One might suppose that the many intergenerational programs currently in place would include a large number devoted to improving relationships in families, particularly between grandparents and grandchildren. This expectation seems reasonable, because elders represent the fastest growing population. However, helping grandparents adjust to a new role has not been a priority for scholars, government agencies or private foundations. The reality is that an increasing number of grandparents are raising their grandchildren or acting as full-time babysitters or volunteering in schools. They could be more effective in these roles if there were courses to help them understand contemporary childhood, parenting, and schooling. This orientation is possible when senior citizen groups encourage their member to offer leadership in establishing grandparent education councils in neighborhood schools. For most grandparents, an elementary school is within walking distance of home or only a short drive.

A grandparent education council focuses on the obligations and needs of grandparents. A council is made up of grandparents, a volunteer coordinator, and someone representing the faculty, usually the principal. Because the leadership is provided by volunteers, the council requires no school funds or faculty (continued on pg. 8)

Page Seven

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

"What are you doing to help grandparents raising grandchildren?"

The Grandparent Raising Grandchildren movement in New York City began when the Brookdale Foundation took an interest in addressing the issue of children at risk. I visited child care programs and day care programs around the city. I saw single parents and grandparents who were caring for the children. I asked: "What are you doing to help the grandparents cope with their new roles?" The answer was, "Nothing special." It became apparent that grandparents raising grandchildren was an emerging and important issue.

The Brookdale Foundation agreed with that assessment and started a major initiative to learn more about the phenomenon of grandparents raising grandchildren. A study of the issues conducted by Meredith Minkler in California confirmed the notion that his is a growing trend and that grandparents need information and supportive services to help them as parents the second time around. The Foundation subsequently funded a number of projects that helped develop local service needs and together with AARP established the national Grandparenting Information Center. In addition, the 1995 White House Conference on Aging gave strong support to the intergenerational issue of grandparents raising grandchildren by selecting it as one of the top 40 recommendations.

Every movement has its leaders. The Brookdale Foundation has forged a path as an ardent advocate for Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. We must have high expectations for all in the field of aging to become active and involved making things better for young and old. You can't sit in your backyard and expect things to happen.

AARP Grandparent Information Center

The relationship between grandparents and grandchildren is often a very special one. But for a growing number of grandparents who are the primary caregivers to their grandchildren, this relationship can also be very challenging. Undertaking the full-time responsibility for raising a grandchild means major changes in the lives of grandparents.

The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) established the Grandparent Information Center to provide information and resources to help grandparents cope with their primary care giving roles. The Center is working with national and community-based agencies in the child care, aging, legal, and family services fields to address this rapidly emerging phenomenon.

The AARP Grandparent Information Center, based in Washington, D.C., was established in Septmeber 1993 to serve as a national resource center for grandparents-headed families, program providers, professionals, researchers, policymakers, and the public at large. The goals of the Center are to: Provide grandparents who are raising grandchildren with information and referrals about services and programs that could assist their families; increase public awareness about grandparents raising grandchildren and the obstacles facing these families; work with and provide technical assistance to social services agencies, grandparent support groups, and others interested in helping these families' examine issues confronting grandparent-headed families, and seek solutions that would address these problems; and facilitate cooperation between the aging, children, family, and legal systems to assist grandparent-headed families.

Page Eight

Addressing issues related to grandparents raising grandchildren

GranConnections

GranConnections , a Family Care Services project, helps grandparent caregivers carry out their commitment to their family without jeopardizing their own health and well-being. GranConnections is a grandparent-centered family focused program which connects grandparent caregivers with resources available in the community, connects grandparent caregiver to each other through peer support and education groups, and promotes advocacy on behalf of grandparent caregivers and their families. For more information contact FamilyCare Services of Metropolitan Chicago at 312-427-8790.

Grandparent Study

The growing phenomenon of grandkids living with grandparents will be the thrust of a three-year study by the newly creaded Center on Aging at Bradley University. The study focuses on the experience of grandparents, age 50 or older, who reside with grandchildren ages 6 through12. It will involve some 700 participants. "This is the first large-scale study of its kind," said Rachel Prunchno, Director of the Center on Aging which was created in January.

The 1995 White House Conference on Aging

1. WHEREAS over two million children are being raised by grandparents;

2. WHEREAS these families represent all socio-economic levels, racial and ethnic groups;

3. WHEREAS nearly half of grandparent-headed households live on $20,000 or less;

4. WHEREAS grandparents who are forced into the role of primary caregiver experience major upheaval, additional stress, and family conflict; and

5. WHEREAS support services generally do not address this group of older persons;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the 1995 White House Conference on Aging to support policies that:

6. Grand legal surrogate decision-making authority to grandparent caregivers in the absence of other responsible persons;

7. Provide culturally and linguistically sensitive information and referral services of grandparent caregivers;

8. Establish comprehensive programs for grandparent caregiver headed households to include respite and day care, legal assistance, mental health and advocacy services, health care and substance abuse treatment;

9. Promote the development of grandparent caregiver support groups;

10. Provide financial, social, and legal supports as needed to grandparent caregivers raising grandchildren;

11. Remove legal and administrative barriers to grandparent caregivers for access to AFDC and Food Stamps as well as other safety net programs; 12. Educate human service providers about the rights of grandparent caregiver households;

13. Enable AoA funding programs to provide supportive services for grandparents and their grandchildren to develop Grandparents Support Groups at Senior Centers;

14. Protect visitation rights of grandparents;

15. Promote intergenerational programs to strengthen the family unit in grandparent headed households;

16. Use existing local, state, and federal revenue streams to accomplish the above purposes.

(Councils, continued from pg. 7) resources. The main priority is to arrange opportunities for grandparents to learn how they can make a greater contribution to family harmony, and to acquaint grandparents with ways they can enrich children's school experience by volunteering and supporting them as students. Excerpts taken from "Intergenerational Learning: Grandparents in the Schools," Educational Gerontology, 1995, 21:321-335.

Page Nine

State Taskforce Seeks to Assist Grandparent Raising Grandchildren

The photo below is the Grandparent Raising Grandchildren Taskforce convened by Family Care Services in Chicago. The statewide group is targeting two areas, the first is to produce a white paper that will advocate for public policy supportive of grandparents raising grandchildren and the second is to promote support services in local area and statewide for grandparents who find they are parents for the second time.

Beginnings of a statewide task force by Patrice Thomas

Have you ever attended a conference and felt so energized by it that you didn't want it to end? On March 16, 1994, the Council on Jewish Elderly's Center for Applied Gerontology hosted a policy panel on this emerging issue. Over 75 people attended. It was the first time people of varied backgrounds such as aging, child welfare, and grandparents themselves had come together on the subject. The meeting was as educational as it was emotional as grandparents and social workers told their stories. The boundless energy dissipated as each attended left the room, but a few people decided to get together and provide follow-up. Those individuals represented the Attorney General's Office, Family Care Services, and grandparent, and AARP, and by the end of their discussion, the Task Force was formed.

In the two years since its inception, the taskforce has grown to include service and housing providers, social services agencies and the IL. Dept. on Aging, among others. It provides not only a network for grandparents raising grandchildren, but informs law-makers and the public on the subject, monitors policies in the state legislature affecting grandparents or grandchildren, survey s the needs of grandparents and is working on an informational publication for them. It is hoped that with this knowledge in hand, agencies will be better equipped to assist grandparents and their grandchildren. This taskforce demonstrates the importance and power or coalition building in any intergenerational activity.

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Study

The IL. Department on Aging is concluding a study about grandparents raising grandchildren in Illinois. The preliminary findings show that the greatest concerns of grandparents raising grandchildren are for: 1) their grandchild's education, and 2) developing child rearing and parenting skills. Maralee Lindley, Director, Illinois Department on Aging remarked, "We must work toward a way of retaining the grandparent's role for grandparents raising their grandchildren." For final results, contact the Illinois Department on Aging, 1-800-252-8966.

Page Ten

Grandparenting Resources

Newsletters:

*AARP Grandparent Information Center Newsletter, American Association of Retired Persons, 601 E. Street, NW, Washington, DC 20049, 202-434-2296 or FAX 202-434-6474.

*Creative Grandparenting, contact Bob Kasey, 609 Blackgates Rd., Wilmington, DE 19803, 302-656-2122.

*Grandparent Times is the signature publication of Caring Grandparents of America. Published by: Grandpartners, Onc., 400 Seventh St., NW, Suite 302, Washington, DC 20004-2206, or 202-783-0950.

* The Vital Connection, Foundation for Grandparenting and Arthur Kronhaber, 53 Principe dePaz, Santa Fe, NM 87505.

*Today's Young Grandparent News, P.O. Box 11143, Shawnee Mission, KS 66207.

Books or Manuals

*Elkind, David--Grandparenting: Understanding Today's Children, Scott Foresman, and Co., Glenview, IL 1990. ,p. *Kornhaber, Arthur and Kenneth Woodward, Grandparents, Grandchildren, The Vital Connection, Doubleday, Garden City, NY., 1981.

*Kornhaber, Arthur, Grandparent Power: How to Strengthen the Vital Connection Among Grandparents, Parents and Children

Contemporary Grandparenting, Sage 1996.

*Levin, Suni, You and Your Grandchildren, Price, Stern Sloan, Los Angeles, 1991.

*Strom, Robert D. and Shirley K.--Achieving Grandparent Potential: Guidebook and Viewpoints, Sage 1992

Becoming a Better Grandparent: Guidebook and Viewpoints, Sage 1991, Grandparent Strengths and Needs Inventory, Scholastic Testing Service, 1-800-642-6STS.

Camps

*Elderhostel, Intergenerational Camps, 1-800-727-4161.

*Grandparent-Grandchild Summer Camps, Foundation for Grandparenting, New York, 315-354-5311.

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Resources

*Directory of Services for Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

*Grandparent Visitation Rights

*A Voice for Grandparents

*Tips for Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

The above publications are available from the American Association of Retired Persons, 601 E. Street, NW, Washington, DC 20049, 202-434-2296 or FAX 202-434-6474 or 1-800-424-3410 x2299.

*Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: A Guide to Finding Help and Hope by Marianne Takas, a publication of the Brookdale Foundation Group, The National Foster Parent Association, 9 Dartmoor Drive, Crystal Lakre, IL 60014, 815-455-2527, $3.

*Kinship Care: A Natural Bridge, CWLA, c/o CSSC, PO Box 7816, 3000 Raritan Center Parkway, Edison, NJ 08818-2085 or 908-225-1900 or FAX 908-417--482 and specify stock #5847.

*Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: A Guide to Chicago Resources, Lutheran Social Services of Illinois, Southeast Case Management Unit, Vera Sorell and Helene Marcy, 8704 Constance, Chicago, IL 60617, 312-734-1400 or FAX 312-734-1401.

New Video: Making the Case for Service Learning

Page Eleven

Coming

October

October 4-6: National Storytelling Festival, Jonesborough, TN 1-800-525-4515

October 8: LIFELONG Community College Coalition, "Here Come the Boomers," College of DuPage, Call Margie Hamilton, 708-858-2800.

October 17: Aging and Mental Health, Collinsville, Illinois Department on Aging, 1-800-252-8966.

October 23-26, 1996: National Society for Expriemtial Education's Conference. Snowbird, Utah. Experiential Education: Transforming Teaching and Learning in Schools, Colleges, Workplaces and Communities. Contact NSEE, 3509 Haworth Drive, Suite 207, Raleigh, NC 27609-7229.

October 31: Deadline for entries for Intergenerational Week Essays. Contact Illinois State Library, 217-785-0977.

November

November 6-8, 1996: Health and Aging Conference by The Illinois Department on Aging & The Illinois Department of Public Health. Hyatt Regency Hotel in Chicago, Illinois. Call The Illinois Department on Aging, 217-785-3387.

November 22-24: L.I.V.E. (Leadership in Volunteerism Experience) '96 "Acting in Concert: Many Voices, OneMessage," at The Illinois State Police Academy in Springfield. Keynote speaker is Judy Richardson, a civil rights movement activist, a founder of The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), series associate producer for Eyes on the Prize, and co-producer for Malcolm X: Make it Plain. Workshops at L.I.V.E. will focus on advocacy, service, multi-culturalism and leadership development development. Shawn Sweeney, 309-438-8123.

Call for Papers

Intergenerational Program Research: Hawthorne Press will publish a volume on research and evaluation of intergenerational programs, edited by Valerie S. Kuehne. The book will focus on intergenerational program research utilizing both quantitative methods, targeting a wide variety of program models, and emphasizing program processes Contact: Valerie S. Kuehne, Ph.D., School of Child and Youth Care, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 1700, Victoria, B.C., Canada V8W 2Y2.

Back Page

Coming September 13

You will find everything you need to begin an intergenerational program or enrich an existing program. Intergenerational experts from all over the State will present a day jam-packed with ideas. The conference theme, Hand in Hand: Connecting Individuals and Communities, will highlight sessions such as tutoring and mentoring, model programs, school to work, building community partnerships, recruiting, fundraising, and more. Margaret Dixon, National President of PTA will provide the keynote. A resource showcase will feature "take with you" information on every intergenerational topic imaginable as well as a bountiful harvest of programming ideas.

What: Intergenerational Gathering

When: September 13, 1996, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Where: Governors State University, South of Chicago at University Park.

3 Ways to Celebrate Intergenerational Week September 8-14, 1996

1. Involve generations in an activity. Plan a local event, for example, hold a storytelling session or community cleanup. Ask your mayor to declare Sept. 8-14 Intergenerational Week.

2. A Basket Full of Memories is an annual Intergenerational Week event. This year's theme is Celebrate America. Interview someone of another generation and learn something about their views on citizenship. Write a poem, essay, or share an anecdote and submit to the Illinois State Library. All ages are welcome from 8 years to 120+.

3. Attend the Intergenerational Conference called Hand in Hand Connecting Individuals and Communities. See previous article.